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Duvets: Facts and Fictions

Tog Ratings, Warmth and Quality

What's a Tog Rating? Does it tell you how warm a quilt will be, how good the quality of a quilt is?
Not really. It helps, but it is far from a complete answer.

A Tog is a unit of measurement for the warmth of a quilt. The trouble is tog ratings are calculated in a laboratory, using a new quilt on a flat surface. Now you are not a flat surface, and how the quilt drapes round you is also very important.

After you've slept under it a few times your quilt isn't new, and poor quality quilts lose their Tog Ratings fast, particularly if they're washed. So a Tog Rating is at best only a rough guide to how warm you'll be.

It is true that a very cheap quilt will have a low tog rating, and will be made of poor quality materials. But of itself the tog rating tells you nothing about a quilt's quality.

So, when you're choosing a quilt, by all means take a note of the tog rating. But if you want a good buy, don't stop there.

Filling: Natural or Synthetic?

You may think that a quilt with a synthetic filling will be better than a naturally filled, prefer the modern to the traditional. But would you feel that way if you got the chance to make a proper comparison?

Probably not. User trials conducted by an independent market research company over a two month period showed that, given the chance to try sleeping under both natural and synthetic quilts, an amazing 75% of users said they preferred the natural quilts.

There are three reasons for this - plus some others that a two month period couldn't show.

First, naturally filled quilts breathe in a way a synthetic quilt can't. So the moisture lost by your body while you sleep - around 1½ pints a night - is absorbed overnight, then gradually lost in the morning when the quilt is aired. You won't get that sticky feeling that can result when you sleep under a synthetic quilt.

Second, natural quilts drape better round the lumps and bumps of your body that synthetics, which are relatively stiff. Because you can snuggle into it better, a natural quilt will usually feel warmer on a chilly night than a synthetic quilt of the same tog rating, even if both are new!

What's more, tog rating for tog rating, a natural quilt will almost always be lighter than a synthetic one. Natural fillings bring warmth without weight, for a really comfortable, natural night's sleep.

But do they last as long as synthetics? How washable are they?

Well, since natural fillings are made from duck and goose down and feather, washability isn't much of a problem. After all, ducks and geese are designed to spend most of their life in the water. Just follow the washing instructions, as you would with anything important, and all should be well. The important thing is to dry it thoroughly.

And - this may surprise you - natural fillings last much longer than synthetics. Most synthetic quilts have a life expectancy of about five years. After that the filling is thin and matted.

Natural fillings stay plump and cosy for longer. Best of all are Goose Down quilts, which should last 40 years.

Care and Washability

Many people believe that while synthetic quilts and pillows are washable, natural ones are not. Frankly, they're just plain wrong. Think about it; ducks and geese spend their lives on and in water.

Natural quilts and pillows can be washed - but they must be properly dried afterwards.

The most important part of caring for a natural quilt is giving it regular and thorough airing.

Local spillages can easily be sponged clean. You'll probably find that if you keep your quilt in a duvet cover, it won't really get dirty in the first place.

However having the quilt professionally washed every few years is a good way to eliminate any build up of house dust mites, the main cause of allergic reactions.

Because ducks and geese spend their lives getting wet, washing is no problem for goose or duck down and feathers. So long as they are dried properly they can be washed over and over again without ill effect.

Ironically this isn't true for synthetic quilts. Synthetic fillings matt anyway during the course of their life (becoming less warm) and washing accelerates this. So if you wash a synthetic quilt, it will quickly lose thickness and warmth.

Most dry cleaners offer a quilt cleaning service. In fact they will wash the quilt at a commercial laundry!

The alternative is to wash the quilt yourself at a launderette. Chose a large machine, and use a non-biological washing powder. Then dry the quilt thoroughly in a really large tumble drier. Shake the quilt between drying cycles to help the separation of the filling as it dries, and let the warm air penetrate it.

The Truth about Allergies

Many people believe that it is common to be allergic to down and feathers, and that synthetic pillows and duvets are best for them.

This has now been proved to be untrue.

Dr. George Strachan (St. George's Hospital, London), Professor Robert Davies (Chairman of The British Allergy Foundation and Consultant in Respiratory Medicine and Allergy) and researchers at the Airedale Allergy Centre all state that the House Dust Mite is the main cause of allergic conditions such as asthma, eczema, and allergic rhinitis.

The House Dust Mite thrives in every home, especially where central heating, double glazing and other insulating features combine to produce humid conditions. They occur in the greatest numbers in bedding, living on the flakes of skin shed by sleepers.

Experts state categorically that mites can accumulate in all types of bedding, be it synthetic or naturally filled. Indeed the best quality natural products - like Nimbus duvets and pillows - have such tightly woven cases that they actually keep out the dust mites.

This may be why research has shown that synthetic pillow surfaces hold three times more dust mite allergen than do those of down and feather pillows. And in turn that could explain why a study by a team from St. George's Hospital, London showed that children using feather pillows were three times less likely to suffer wheezing attacks than those with synthetic bedding.

Experts do recommend that the bedding of allergy sufferers is washed regularly. At 40°C all the mite droppings - which cause the allergic reaction - are removed. It can take up to a year for mite droppings to build up to a level where they will again cause an allergic reaction

At 55°C the mites themselves will all be killed. Then it will take even longer for the dust levels to rise again, though eventually the bedding will be repopulated by mites from, say, the bedroom carpet.

Natural duvets and pillows wash extremely well. Given thorough tumble drying they recover their entire original loft and springiness, unlike synthetic products, which flatten progressively wash after wash, losing their warmth.

Pillows - The Facts

Natural Pillows are the best buy for two important reasons:

Comfort

Because natural pillows are able to mould to your shape, they can support the head more effectively than synthetics. And because, unlike synthetics, the filling and casing can breathe, they are more comfortable in warm weather.

Durability

Natural fillings are far more resilient than synthetics, and retain their ability to offer support for much longer. We make doubly sure of a long life span by using only 100% new, high quality fillings; we use no recycled feathers or down. A pillow of this quality can be plumped up daily, and won't go limp and flat for years.

Washability

Like natural duvets, pillows filled with down and feathers from geese and ducks are washable. However because the filling is quite dense, it's important to make sure all the filling is really dry after washing, as damp may cause deterioration.

Allergies

The vast majority of allergy sufferers are not allergic to natural fillings, but to dust created by house mites. Naturally filled pillows can actually be better for many allergy sufferers.

Which Filling Should I Choose?

Goose Feather or Duck Feather

Hard-wearing and more comfortable than synthetics, they are excellent value for money

Goose Feather and Down or Duck Feather and Down

Softer and more resilient, because they contain 15% down.

Duck Down and Feather

More luxurious, containing 51% down and only 49% feather. They are also more resilient, and last longer.

Goose Down or Duck Down

These pillows offer the ultimate in luxury and comfort. They are soft and light, have an unparalleled ability to spring back into shape, and a remarkably long life.

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